ROHIDA a.k.a VICHITRAGAD

Living in Mumbai, I have covered most of the nearby trekking spots over years. So when a chance came to spend a weekend in Pune, I was glad to have new options to consider. Rohida fort is not too far away from Pune and I had heard it was an easy trek so it made good sense to go there (though it being a Sunday I was afraid of crowds of trekkers).

Rohida fort seen from temple at base village Bazaarwadi.

I set out with my cousin and my uncle on Sunday morning at 6.30 towards the small town of Bhor, about one hour away from south Pune where we were based. The weather was cool and cloudy and the roads were empty. We even gave an old grandfather a ride when we stopped to ask him for directions. From Bhor we had to reach the base village of Bazaarwadi.

The village lies at the foot of the fort, surrounded by mountains. The fort itself seemed quite close though the citadel was high and lost in clouds. Near the village school there is a water tank from where the trek starts. One has to climb along a grassy ridge till a point where the stone markers appear. The villagers have clearly demarcated the path so it’s difficult to get lost.

The route steeply ascends and grass gives way to bushes. We could now make out two bastions at the two ends of the fort. Eventually the route reaches the first gate and then one enters a series of gates with intact fortifications. The last gate has two carved elephant heads on each side. The fort was initially shrouded in mist but a map at the top was a helpful indicator.

Rohida is also known as Vichitragad, though the reasons for that name seemed unclear. There is a temple of Rohideshwar at the summit; this is a lovely spot with tanks nearby. In fact the whole fort though not very big has been impressively maintained by villagers and an organisation. They have demarcated the routes, cleared the rubbish and planted trees. I was impressed and wished that others could take a hint from here. They had made most changes without spoiling the inherent beauty of the place.

After leisurely exploring the fort, taking in the views (which were fantastic as the clouds lifted away) and having food, we were ready to descend. As we descended it started raining and the wind was very strong. I had heard about strong winds on this fort and though I have experienced worse, I could imagine the force on a very rainy day.

By twelve we were comfortably back (we started at nine) and we even got home in time for lunch; surely one of the shortest treks I have had!

Water tank on top of Rohida Fort

Photos at:
https://picasaweb.google.com/115394767952469723630/RohidaFort

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TREK TO TANDULWADI FORT

The monsoon in 2014 was absentee in June so I had to wait avidly till July for any trekking to begin. Luckily the rains arrived in July and I was off initially to Bhimashankar (again). That trek always gets trekkers by the dozen during rains, though this time there were much fewer groups. However the thought of going to an offbeat place where one could almost enjoy the location exclusively for a while was tempting!

So I zeroed on to Tandulwadi fort, a small mountain just outside the western suburbs of Mumbai. We took a fast train to Dahanu and got down at Safale station (second station after Virar). From Safale one can either get a bus or a shared auto to go to Tandulwadi phata. From here a short walk on the tar road takes one to the base village from where this fort is easily visible.

Tandulwadi fort from base village

We had cloudy skies so there was promise of rain when we started. The trek starts from a small pond outside the village. One has to go from the left side of the pond and ascend gradually. The ascent takes us to a plateau. The first point on plateau is kind of a pass; it windy out here. There are a few paths that meet at this point and we took the right one. The route then on traverses this plateau and eventually enters into the forest near the main massif of the fort. This is where things get a bit tricky and a guide would be helpful.

We back-tracked a bit but found the correct path. We luckily met two other hikers who were also lost and phoning their friends for directions. We followed our instincts and traversed a bit more before entering the forest. Ultimately we met the two guys who had more luck with one of our ‘failed paths’. Through the forest now the climb is steep and after a solid climb of half an hour we were on top. Rain was scarce but that meant lovely views all around.

On the top one has to walk for a while through lovely forest (especially a grove of cacti) till one starts seeing remnants of the fort. We saw a carved tank that was empty. We saw some walls and a few steps. Other than that there is hardly anything of the old fort left. On top we had lunch as we gazed on the surrounding countryside. We did see the confluence of two rivers which was great. The wind was strong on the top and soon we had a burst of rain that continued till we descended.

Descent was quicker and we were back quickly to the base village. We took an auto (charge ten bucks per person) to Safale station and took a train to Dadar at quarter past four. This is a comparatively easy outing in the rains and easily accessible from Mumbai – we were home comfortably by six!

Pics posted at:

https://picasaweb.google.com/115394767952469723630/TandulwadiFort

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